Guillermo Ochoa introduced his retirement this week, closing out a 22-year skilled profession at 41 years outdated that noticed him turn out to be probably the most recognizable goalkeepers within the sport. The Mexican made his skilled debut for Membership America on February 15, 2004, stopping in for a 3-2 win over Monterrey on the Azteca at simply 18 years outdated.
That very same yr additionally marked the start of one other legendary profession, as Lionel Messi made his first-team debut for Barcelona on October 16, 2004, approaching instead in a 1-0 win at 17 years outdated.
Each gamers, alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, would go on to outline greater than twenty years of the game, culminating in a shared piece of World Cup historical past on the 2026 match.
Given the size of their careers, evaluating sheer quantity of matches performed places Ochoa’s longevity into perspective, even towards two of probably the most sturdy gamers the game has ever seen.
Guillermo Ochoa #13 of Mexico is tossed into the air by his teammates. (Getty Photos)
Ronaldo leads the trio by a large margin, having featured in roughly 1,330 official matches for membership and nation. Messi isn’t far off the tempo both, sitting at near 1,164 appearances throughout his time with Barcelona, PSG, Inter Miami and Argentina.
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Ochoa’s whole, against this, sits at round 942 official appearances throughout his profession, cut up between spells at Membership America, Ajaccio, Malaga, Granada, Customary Liege, Salernitana, AVS and AEL Limassol, alongside along with his time with the Mexican nationwide workforce.
The document that ties all three collectively
Regardless of the hole in appearances, Ochoa, Messi and Ronaldo are certain by a shared achievement no different participant has matched: all three grew to become the one gamers in historical past to function in six completely different World Cup editions, a run that stretches from 2006 by means of 2026.
The place the trio differs is in enjoying time throughout these tournaments, with Ochoa that includes far much less repeatedly than the opposite two, however his mere presence throughout six editions of the match was sufficient to position him in a class beforehand thought unimaginable to achieve.
